Violent polling units will not have their votes counted, INEC chair announces

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned that any polling unit that witnesses violence in the upcoming governorship election in Bayelsa on Saturday will have its votes nullified.

The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made this declaration at a stakeholders meeting in Yenagoa. He was represented by Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu, the INEC National Commissioner supervising Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, and Rivers.

Yakubu also said that INEC would use BIVAS, a customised device for biometric verification and authentication, in all polling units for the election.

“Our BIVAS have INEC details and the names of the parties on them, so any BIVAS without INEC details is not from us. We also have a list of the serial numbers of the BIVAS we are going to use. The result sheets will be signed at the polling units. We will not return to any polling unit where there is violence to conduct elections. We have recruited and trained all categories of ad hoc staff to be deployed to the field. All non-sensitive materials have been distributed to all eight local government offices in the state. Voter education and sensitization are ongoing,” he said.

He added, “We have arranged for the transportation of personnel and materials to ensure that polling units open on time on election day. For more effective supervision of the process, we are deploying two national commissioners and eight resident electoral commissioners to support our office in Bayelsa. We are committed to a free, fair, and credible election on Saturday.”

The state commissioner of police, Mr. Tolani Alausa, said the police were ready to ensure a peaceful election on Saturday. He was represented by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in Charge of Operations, Mr. Ijamah Daniel.

Alausa said that the police would deploy enough personnel for the election. “In every polling unit, we are going to deploy three to six personnel. The IGP has also deployed 21 units of the mobile police force and other tactical units like the special force, the counter-terrorism unit, and the special protection unit to Bayelsa. I advise everyone to be law-abiding because we are prepared to deal with any challenge that may arise. We are equal to the task,” he said.